Air Force A Two-Touchdown Favorite

Week #12 should be more fun than a tornado in a trailer park.  The matchups are terrific!  Here are some quick picks:

#1/2 K-State easily over Baylor on the road.
#2/1 Oregon drives the Quack Wagon over a formidable #13 Stanford.
#3 Notre Dame makes Wake Forest wish they'd never added the Irish to their schedule.
#4 Alabama (Western Carolina), #5 Georgia (Georgia Southern), and #7 Florida (Jacksonville State) should just take a week off instead of pretending to play football against opponents only BYU would schedule.
#6 The Ohio State struggles but ultimately gets by Wisconsin.
#8 LSU denies Ole Miss the upset.
#9 Texas A & M suffers some post-'Bama letdown but eventually embarasses Sam Houston State.
#10 Free Shoes U humiliates Maryland.

Now for the usual stone-cold, lead-pipe locks.

Air Force (5-5) vs. Hawaii (1-8).  Which Air Force team will show up…the one that lost to Michigan by only five points, or the one that lost to Army by 20?  Even if it’s the latter, they have plenty to beat the ‘Bows, who stop opposing teams about as effectively as you stop your crazy friend from sending all those forwards to your inbox.  My Hawaiian friend (and USC alum) Mr. Rad reminded me that Norm Chow, a lifelong offensive coordinator, is now at the helm in Honolulu.  This bodes well for Cody Getz, who should be back up to speed after injury slowed him for the past several games.  There's no Obama Trophy at the end of the Falcon rainbow, but I predict that they'll make a push to become the nation's top rushing team.  In fact, they may not throw a single pass in this game.  Be prepared for The Academy to accept a bid to the Bell Helicopter Bowl following this one.  PICK:  Air Force by two touchdowns.

Army (2-8) vs. Temple (3-6).  This is not your older brother’s Temple team.  Well, only a couple of us have older brothers, but I digress.  One of my original doormats, Temple got good—26-and-12-good—for three years.  Nowadays, not so much.  The Owls’ last losing season was 2008, after which they moved briefly into independence from the old Atlantic-10, and eventually landed in the Big East.  The Cadets still lead the nation in rushing, while Temple answers with the nation’s fifth-worst passing game, ahead of…Air Force, Navy, Army, and New Mexico.  Both teams play horrible defense (you’d think that teams who run the ball would know about strategies to stop the run, wouldn’t you?).  Temple has beaten more impressive teams, while Army has lost to more impressive teams.  Nod goes to the home team.  PICK:  Army in a close and forgettable game.

Navy (6-4) vs. Texas State (3-6).  The days of picking Navy over a team with a losing record aren’t so safe.  What’s with these guys?  Looking ahead to Army?  That gets you beat by Troy.  Ah, but who cares?  Mids are already penciled in for this year’s Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Bowl and ready to jump from the ranks of the independent into the Big East (what’s left of it) in two years.  A few weeks ago I picked the Bobcats to beat New Mexico.  They didn’t.  But in losing a shootout to #19 Louisiana Tech last week, State got its hands on the ball a lot.  Don’t see that happening against Navy, which will burn clock and pile up yards on the ground in Annapolis.  PICK:  Navy, as it builds momentum for Philly on December 8th.

BYU (6-4) at San Jose State (8-2).  The end of the cupcake wars!  So, does the losing team get “iced”?  Cougars allowed Idaho only 92 yards of rushing last week.  Unfortunately for them, the Spartan offense features QB David Fales, who is ranked fourth in the country in passing efficiency (and 72% completion rate).  While BYU counters with QB Riley Nelson, he will face a SJS defense ranked 7^th in sacks.  FLASH:  BYU just announced a home-and-home series with UNLV for 2014-15!  This series with San Jose is one of those rarities where the opponent has the advantage over BYU (9-6), and with the Spartans playing at home for the first time since 1968, they may be more motivated than the Poinsettia Bowl-bound Cougars.  PICK:  San Jose State to knock the sprinkles off of BYU.

#21 USC (7-3) at #18 UCLA (8-2).  What’s this…UCLA ranked ahead of USC??  Too bad that the Lakers not hiring Phil Jackson stole the headlines this week.  Lots at stake in this one, not the least of which is bragging rights to Los Angeles (for whatever that’s worth).  Trojans have more star power, while the Bruins get the job done on the ground.  Most folks know about senior QB Matt Barkley, but few realize that Westwood freshman Brett Hundley is a 70% passer with six rushing TDs to his credit.  As the saying goes, three things can happen when you pass the ball, and two of them are bad.  Neither team plays much defense, both can put points on the board in a hurry.  I say the team that runs more, takes more time off the clock, has more incentive, and is overdue for a win in the Rose Bowl gets the nod.  PICK:  UCLA (once again, don’t tell my mother-in-law I said so).

New Mexico (4-7) vs. Nevada (6-4).  Both teams are on serious losing streaks (UNM 4 games, UNR 3 games).  If the Wolf Pack (and specifically QB Cody Fajardo) can hold onto the ball, it should be enough to beat the Lobos, who gave up 374 yards and 4 TDs through the air to Wyoming.  On the other hand, Nevada has given up an average of 34 points per game, that number growing to 46+ points during the past three weeks.  New Mexico stays on the ground, which chews up time and tends to keep the score low, which should make Nevada happy.  It was nice while it lasted for Bob Davie and his UNM team, which is unlikely to play in the postseason.  Meanwhile, Nevada could use a win in order to guarantee their own bowl bid.  PICK:  Nevada on the road.

POSTSCRIPT:  Someone said that Air Force and Hawaii played last night.  How'd it turn out?